Student Shocked at Finding out Air Fryer Needs to be Cleaned After Use
“What’s that smell?”
Although common, it was the question that changed everything for local FSU student Sophia Jones. After her Monday afternoon spent making the Emily Mariko TikTok salmon bowl, her roommate, Cristina Hernandez, opened up the communal kitchen air fryer to throw in a cheddar cheese quesadilla, her favorite depression meal. When she opened the basket, she was hit with a smell she described as “rancid” and “musty.” Through a gag, she asked Sophia, “What’s that smell? When was the last time you washed this?” Sophia, confused by the question, had never realized that it needed to be washed in the first place. The futuristic nature of the appliance led her to believe the mess evaporated, or self-cleaned, just like her room did when her mom’s Hispanic friend came to the house every other week. Who knows why things seem so dirty now?
“I didn’t realize the basket was 2 parts. When I opened it up, I saw the breadcrumbs from my summer chicken parm in there. I don’t know, call me crazy but I feel like the accumulated musk has just been adding flavor this whole time. I thought it was like a cast-iron skillet type of situation where the more you cook, the more flavor the pan retains. It’s been the Christmas gift that keeps on giving. I don’t want to say goodbye to the fallen buffalo sauce from the best drunk chicken wings I’ve ever had in my life. There are memories at the bottom of that air fryer basket. Creating that cauldron of flavor took forever.”
If there were microtrends for food, Sophia’s air fryer was a cookbook for them. Hernandez, disgusted by the salmon skin remnants and mystery marinades, told us she was “just happy she didn't get salmonella poisoning from all the unseasoned chicken Sophia cooks in there at high heat for ten minutes.” Somehow the mystery of what caused the house’s September food poisoning incident has never been solved.“I miss microwavable foods,” reminisced Hernandez. “Whatever happened to the hype of Lean Cuisine or Hot Pockets? Now, it’s air fryer this and air fryer that. I’ll take the potential risks of radiation any day. I’m a simple gal. I like my Trader Joe’s microwavable snacks and frozen broccoli bags. I’m anti-air fryer all the way.”
With that being said, take this as a sign to clean the bottom of your air fryer after every use. Despite what you may think, buffalo and teriyaki sauce are not meant to live symbiotically. We promise those leftovers will still be just as good without the stink of all their fallen brethren clouding around them.